‘Wow. That’s so cool.’
Joel looked pleased with himself. ‘I thought you’d like it. Aren’t they amazing?’
Sam nodded vigorously. ‘Would they eat you?’
‘No, I don’t think they’re that type of shark. We can read about them if you like.’ Joel strolled over to an information board and Sam joined him, reading it aloud.
Joel looked at him in surprise. ‘You read well.’
Sam swelled with pride. ‘My mum taught me. I could read when I was four.’
‘Could you, now? You must have a pretty special mum.’ Joel’s eyes rested on Lucy and she blushed.
They spent an hour looking round the Sea Life Centre and then they walked down the road to find somewhere to eat.
‘You know, pizza would be nice,’ Lucy suggested, and Joel grinned.
‘Great. Better than hamburger.’
They found a pizza restaurant, settled themselves at a table and Joel ordered the food.
Soon they were chatting about the sharks, Sam’s school and Cornwall in general.
‘I love it here, Mum. It’s heaps better than where we lived before. Imagine having sharks living so close.’ Sam had his mouth full of pizza and was grinning from ear to ear. ‘And with Joel here, it’s almost like being a proper family again.’
Lucy felt as though she’d jumped naked into a freezing bath. ‘We are a proper family, sweetheart,’ she said, trying to hide her dismay at his comment.
Joel had stopped eating and was looking at Sam. ‘Why does having me here make you feel like a proper family?’ His voice was gruff and Sam stared at them miserably, obviously aware that he’d said something wrong.
‘Because families usually have a daddy,’ he mumbled. ‘Kevin’s mum and dad split up, but now he has another daddy. A different daddy. I think I’d like another daddy. You’d be a nice daddy.’
Lucy looked at him, appalled and embarrassed. ‘Sam—’
‘Hush, it’s OK.’ Joel reached across the table and grasped her hand, indicating that she should leave it to him. ‘Why would you like to have another daddy, Sam?’
‘Because it makes Mummy laugh,’ Sam said immediately. ‘When it’s just the two of us, she’s often sad. But when you’re there she’s always smiling.’
‘Sam, please…’ Lucy was mortified, and Joel tightened his grip on her hand.
‘It must have been very hard on your mum, not having your dad around,’ he told Sam quietly. ‘It’s not surprising she sometimes feels sad.’
‘But she’s not sad since she met you. So she should marry you,’ Sam said firmly.
Joel’s eyes met Lucy’s and she looked away immediately, scarlet with embarrassment.
What had she done?
She should never have allowed her friendship with Joel to develop. It hadn’t occurred to her that Sam might misinterpret their relationship. She’d never imagined that he was so desperate for a man’s attention that he’d latch onto Joel as a prospective father.
‘Joel is just a friend, Sam,’ she said quickly, dragging her hand away from Joel’s and wondering how such a happy afternoon could have suddenly turned so awful.
‘But you don’t cry any more,’ Sam said, and Joel frowned.
‘Did she used to cry?’
Sam nodded, exchanging a grown-up look with Joel. ‘At night. When she thought I was asleep. But I could hear her through the wall.’
Lucy closed her eyes and wished she were somewhere else.